Among the Betrayed
by Adrian Jade
Summary: Tens years ago Danny Fisher was an ordinary man put into extraordinary circumstances by a complete stranger. He rescued the girl and thought he could go on living a normal life. But sometimes our sins come back to haunt us. AN AJ/CraftyTink529 collab.


_Title: Among the Betrayed_

_It had only been seven seconds. Seven seconds had turned Danny Fisher's normally mundane existence into a living nightmare. His attention had been diverted for seven seconds. Molly was going to kill him. How could he be so stupid?_

_--_

"My toy." Five-year-old Ayden Fisher snatched the toy that had been in the breakfast cereal from his younger brother two-year-old Stellan.

"Boys stop fighting and eat your cereal please. I have to get your brother to school on time today or Mommy is going to be very mad at me." Danny Fisher said as he haphazardly managed to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and bag it before placing it in his oldest son's Spiderman lunchbox.

"Dad is my lunch almost ready?" Seven-year-old Jensen asked.

"Yes." Danny said. "Are your shoes on?"

"Yep." The young boy grinned at his father as he showed him that his shoes were already on. Danny rolled his eyes and bent down to correct the shoes that his son had put on the wrong feet.

Stellan let out a wail and Danny looked up to see that Ayden had taken a chunk out of his younger brother's arm. Danny sighed as her picked the toddler up out of his highchair and rubbed his back.

"When we get back time out for Ayden. You are gonna sit in the time out chair for ten minutes and there will be no toys for a half hour after that."

Ayden hopped down for the chair he had been sitting in and took off. "Shortie!" He yelled as he made a b-line for the family's pug.

"Ayden leave Shortie alone." Shortie cowered in fear of the child. Danny gave him sympathetic eyes as Ayden tried to pick the dog up. "Sorry boy." He scooped his little trouble maker up into his free let arm and let him dangle there.

"Daddy this is fun." Ayden laughed.

"The only way I can keep you from bouncing off the walls boy."

"Dad, we're gonna be late." Jensen looked at the clock on the wall by the front door.

"You got everything?" Danny asked.

"Yep." Jensen shrugged into his coat and placed his backpack across his shoulders. His trusty lunchbox was in his hands.

"Ok then." Danny opened the front door and let the boys out of the house. He placed Stellan into his stroller and kept a firm grip on Ayden's hand while keeping a close eye on Jensen, who was walking ahead of them.

Within a five minute walk, the Fisher boys arrived at the school yard. Danny stopped his "train" and told Ayden to hold onto the stroller. He hugged his older son.

"Have a good day today. Try not to get into trouble. One more bad note home and your mom is not going to be happy." Danny smiled and ruffled the sandy blonde colored hair atop his son's head.

"Yes Dad." Jensen laughed.

"Love you son." Danny high fived him and watched him walk off.

When he turned around, Ayden was gone and all that remained was a crying Stellan.

Danny looked around the school yard with a panic stricken face. He lifted Stellan from the stroller and quickly surveyed the playground for Ayden.

"Oh shit." He said. "Shh, Stell, it's okay. Daddy's gotta find your brother. Did you see where he went? Bubba, you gotta calm down."

Danny knew that Stellan wouldn't really be able to answer him and that's what scared him the most. His two year old son was the last person to see his five year old son. And at two, he would be useless in any information.

There was no sign of Ayden anywhere. Danny called out for him for a good hour and asked each parent that he came across if he had seen the short, brown haired blue eyed boy wearing a New Orleans PD shirt and jeans with his little Nike's. No one had seen him. He knew now that he needed to call work and report him missing. Then he'd have to call Molly, and he wasn't ready to do that. She was still getting over the fact that he had fallen asleep about a month ago and Jensen had convinced Ayden that it was a good idea to cut Stellan's hair. Nope she definitely was not going to like that he lost their middle son.

He picked up his cell and called his new partner Troy Rowe. "Troy, it's Danny." He was panicking and it was evident in his voice.

"What's up man?" The younger white male detective asked.

"Someone took Ayden. One minute he's there, then next minute he's gone. I was saying goodbye to Jensen and I turn back and all I hear is Stellan crying and Ayden is gone." Danny explained quickly.

"Are you sure someone took him Danny? Maybe he just wandered off. I mean he is your son after all." Troy reasoned.

"This isn't funny man. He's gone. No sign of him at all." Danny was crying n the inside but he knew if he lost it now, he'd scare Stellan and even worse, freak out Molly when he did call her.

His mind was flashing to ten years ago when Molly was taken from him.

"Alright, relax. I'll get over to your place with a team and we'll set up. Is there anyone we've pissed off lately that would want to do this to you?" Troy asked as he grabbed his badge and gun from his desk.

"No. Not that I can think of. But we're detectives man, it could be anyone." Danny thought quickly.

He knew this was the time. He needed to call Molly. She was going to be furious with him but not even her most intense anger at him could be half as bad as the anger he had for himself. He, afterall, lost their middle child. He hung up with Troy and dialed Molly's cell. She would be on her way home from the hospital by now, her shift ending not long ago. By his guess, she was on the ferry.

"Hey baby. Did the boys get to school okay? Ayden didn't give you too much trouble this time right?" Molly smiled. She was indeed on her way home and on the ferry. Ayden was their trouble maker when it came to actually leaving for school most of the time. He would go through these patterns of separation anxiety and cry once he was dropped off.

"Babe, you know when you take the boys to school? Is there anywhere Ayden might like to hide and not want to come out?"

"Daniel Fisher, what is going?"

"Molly, Ayden is missing." He said slowly.

"Wh...what?" Molly felt her heart stop. She grew white knuckled on the ferry's railing as the tears sprang to her eyes.

"Honey, I swear, I had him at all times. I turned around to say goodbye to Jensen and then next thing I know as Jen's running to class, Stell's crying and Ayden's gone." Danny was worried now.

"Did you call the police?" She asked not really thinking about what she was asking.

"Hun, I am the police." He heard her sniffle and realized that it was not the best time for funny statements. "Yes I called Troy and filled him in. He and a team should be at the house when you get there. I dunno what to do. Should I leave Jensen in school or should I just take him home. I don't even know if I should leave because I'm not sure if he is just hiding but I swear I searched everywhere and there is not even a trace of him."

"I....I have to go." Molly cried and hung up. She was thankful she had her sunglasses on at that moment. She couldn't believe Danny just let one of the kids go like that.

Danny decided to let Jensen stay in school and after one more complete search of the area he went home.

Molly was just walking up to the house and Troy had been there setting up. Stellan was in his pac and play in the living room with Troy and the team. She went straight for her baby and picked him up. He rested his head against her shoulder and began shutting his eyes. It had been a long morning for him after all.

"Where's Danny?" Molly asked still completely furious with her husband.

"He's up in Jensen and Ayden's room." Troy informed his partner's wife with saddened eyes.

--

Danny sat on the edge of Jensen's bed with Ayden's favorite stuffed monkey in his hands. How could he have been so careless to take his attention away from his son for even a second? His wife had asked him to do one simple thing and he had let her down again. He was a police officer, he knew what went down on the streets. For all he knew some sicko could be doing god knows what to his innocent little boy. His perfect seven pound 3 ounce baby boy. The one he stayed up late into the night with as an infant because of his colic. The one who always greeted him with a huge smile and a hug before he started trying to climb him. The one he called his little monkey.

"Danny?" Molly opened the bedroom door to gaze upon the broken form of her husband.

"Molly, I need a minute." Her heart broke hearing his voice crack. It was evident that he was either about to burst into tears or he recently had.

"Danny ... you have a phone call." Troyyelled up to his partner.

Danny took the stairs two at a time to reach the phone that Troy had in his hands. He stared at it for a moment, internally debating if this had anything to do with Ayden.

"H...hello"

"Hi Daddy." Ayden chirped happily.

"Monkey where are you? Tell Daddy where you are so I can come get you."

"Bye bye Daddy."

"No! Ayden do not hang up the phone." Molly was white with fear. Even Troy looked a little shaken. When he had answered the phone it had been a grown man who asked for Danny.

"Hello Daniel. It's been a while." A venomous version of a voice he had known so well greeted him. Danny chocked in surprise.

"Hank?"

"Danny, that is impossible. Hank died ten years ago." Molly reminded her husband.

Danny raised a hand to silence his wife. The voice spoke again on the other line.

"Long time no talk, huh?" Hank said on the other end. His voice sounded the same but there was a hint of hoarseness to it. Most likely from the many surgeries and therapy.

"H...Hank, where's Ayden?" Danny asked. He was shaken visibly and his hand was trembling. Confusion streamed through his eyes.

"Well if I told you, it would be no fun in this right?" Hank stated. "You're used to games by now Danny. I've got one of my own. The rules are the same as before, only this time instead of Molly, I have Ayden." He continued.

"I'm listening." Danny cringed. He looked at Troy. He only needed 30 more seconds to trace him.

"Taking him was round one. I know you're looking for me. Troy's there with a trace. I'll be in contact." Hank said and hung up. The next thing Danny heard was a long dial tone.

"God damn it." Danny yelled and almost threw the phone against the wall but Troy grabbed his hand just before Danny could release the receiver.

"You do that, we'll never know." Troy stated.

"I don't get it." Danny was seething now. Molly, on the verge of tears, was lost and confused.

"I went to his funeral, I buried his body. I carried his God damned casket. I gave his badge to his mother." Danny fumed.

"Danny, how?" Molly asked, her tears now forming lines down her face.

"I don't know." He pulled her into his arms. "I don't know." He tried comforting her. Then Molly realized what was really going on. Danny had let him out of his sight.

"You did this. This is your fault." She began angrily beating on his chest.

Danny held her tightly as she continued her assault on his chest. Eventually the blows stopped and the tears started. The front of his shirt became drenched.

"Let me go." She sobbed. Danny held her tighter.

"Molly, shhhh." Danny soothed. He tried smoothing her hair down but she pushed herself away from him.

"You find my boy. I am the only one who knows what he is going through right now." Molly's lip quivered as she walked upstairs.

Danny ran a tired hand over his face. "I don't know where to start."

"We have to wait for another phone call. He knows we're here. He knows how to out smart us. He is one of us." Troy pointed out.

There was a knock on the front door. Danny rushed to opened hoping beyond hopes that it would be Ayden. Hoping that Hank had come to his senses. His face fell as he opened it only to reveal a bike messenger.

"Letter for Danny Fisher. You him?"

"Yea." Danny took the letter and slammed the door shut in the poor man's face.

Danny tore open the letter. It was typed and read: _Round Two. Think back to where my life changed. You have seven minutes._


End file.
